1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of digital communications. More particularly, the present invention relates to digital audio packet-switched communications.
2. Background Information
A need exists to ensure that quality of service (QoS) is maximized in a high-volume packet-switched network. Presently, digital audio information, e.g., a G.711 speech sample, is packetized prior to transmission over a packet-switched network. The digital audio packets represent information of a discrete period of an audio signal. Additionally, other types of digitized audio information, e.g., facsimile or modem data that has been converted from analog to digital format, can be packetized prior to transmission over a packet-switched network.
When a router/switch in the packet-switched network is overburdened during a high-volume peak, the storage capacity of a buffer of the router may be reached. When a storage capacity of a buffer of the router is reached, incoming packets may be “dropped” or discarded without being forwarded to a destination. As a result of dropping packets, digital audio information received at a receiver may be incomplete. For example, notable gaps in packetized voice over internet protocol speech, received over an internet protocol network, may occur.
Previously, each packet of a digital audio communication could be given a high transmission priority for transmission over a packet-switched network. However, when a large amount of communications over the network are of the high-priority communication type, the problem of dropped packets is still encountered during a high-volume period. As a result, the router drops even high-priority packets during a high-volume peak when a large amount of packets transmitted over the network are assigned a high-priority.
Additionally, extra bandwidth could be allocated to ensure high-priority packets are not dropped in a high-volume peak. However, the additional bandwidth may not be needed except during the high-volume peaks. As a result, great cost may be incurred to inefficiently address a problem that occurs only a fraction of the time.
Accordingly, a need exists to reduce the number and percentage of high-priority digital audio packets that are transmitted over a packet-switched network. Additionally, a need exists to prioritize, according to importance, the bits of packetized digital audio samples transmitted over a packet-switched network. Furthermore, a need exists to transmit the most important bits of packetized digital audio samples in packets separate from the least important bits, so that when a high-volume peak occurs in the packet-switched network, the most important bits are still received.
To solve the above-described problems, soft packet dropping during digital audio packet-switched communications is provided to separate bits of digital audio samples into high-priority and low priority packets, so that only the low-priority packets are dropped in a peak-volume period while the high-priority packets are forwarded.